


Wait For Me to Come Home

by Ravens_World



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-13
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-12-14 13:06:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21016256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ravens_World/pseuds/Ravens_World
Summary: 3x04 Speculation fic.Eddie is hurt in the street fight, and Lena calls Buck to take him home.





	Wait For Me to Come Home

**Author's Note:**

> I know this'll be 100% wrong, lol, but I had to get it off my chest. Excuse any clumsy mistakes, please, because I wrote this in like two hours.
> 
> Also, I realized I fucking suck at writing kissing scenes, so I hope the one in this fic is not too cringeworthy!
> 
> Let me know what you think!

Buck woke up to the sound of his phone ringing. Disoriented, he clumsily tried to untangle himself from the comforter, but by the time he managed it, his phone stopped ringing. He contemplated ignoring it alltogether, but decided against it. If someone was calling him at 1 am, it was bound to be important. The caller ID flashed "Eddie", and his heart nearly beat out of his chest. He immediately called back and waited anxiously until he picked up.

"Buck?" An unfamiliar female voice asked, only a little hesitant.

His insides turned cold. Buck closed his eyes and told himself to breath. "Yeah, I'm Buck. Who are you? Is Eddie okay? Why are you calling from his phone?"

"He's- Eddie's fine, but you need to get down here. Things got a little out of hand, and I don't know- look, I'll send you the location and you'll see for yourself, alright?"

She hung up and just like that, Buck was left staring at his phone in slight disbelief.

True to her word, she sent him the location afew seconds later and he hesitated, wondering if he should send the location to someone from the team instead of going there himself. He was pretty sure Eddie, along with the rest of the team, hated him right now. Joining the LAFD internal affairs department hadn't been his plan, but when he'd been approached by Anderson, who had implied that he would be investigating a lawsuit against his team, along with others, he'd felt the need to be involved. His team hadn't understood that, and they'd felt betrayed by his choice. Buck had tried to explain, multiple times, but they hadn't allowed him the chance to. Eddie had taken it the hardest, and try as he might, Buck hadn't been able to get through to him.

Buck closed his eyes and took a deep breath in. It didn't matter if he was mad at him, Eddie was in some sort of trouble and he had to be there for him. Buck would worry about the rest later.

.

Once he got to the place, which was pretty remote, Buck took a minute to absorb what he was seeing. From the looks of it, it seemed to be a street fighting ring, or something like that. Buck had no idea why Eddie would be in a place like this, and though he was hesitant, he got out of his car and took out his phone. The woman answered on the third ring. "Where are you?"

"I'm not sure I'm in the right place, to be honest with you. There's a street fight going on, I think?"

"Alright, we're headed your way."

He heard the dial tone and frowned, pocketing his phone. This was the second time she hung up on him. Ten minutes later, a car pulled up beside him and a woman jumped out of the driver side door. When he looked through the windshield, there was Eddie in the passenger seat, bruised as all hell and nearly passed out. She left him in the car and approached Buck, who met her halfway.

"What the hell happened to him?!"

"You Buck?" She asked, blocking his way to the car.

"Yeah, I'm Buck. _What the hell happened?_" He repeated.

She shrugged. "Told him about the fights when he said he wanted to let out some steam, so he wanted to come."

Buck stared at her incredulously. "Why the hell would you do that? He has a kid at home!"

Her face hardened. "I am not his keeper," she snapped at him. "He's an adult, and he came here willingly."

Buck, throughly chastened, apologized to her. "I just- I'm worried. Christopher will freak out when he sees him like this."

She softened a bit. "The man's got issues and I thought this might help with some of them. Apparently not."

Buck nodded, and motioned back towards his car. "Can you move your car closer to mine?"

She nodded and headed back to her car. He did the same, and when her car was parallel to his, he moved to grab Eddie before she got out of the car. He pulled his arm around his shoulders and hauled him out, though he tried to be as gentle as possible. Eddie groaned. "Buck?"

"Hey, Eddie," he said quietly. "Heard you had an exciting night."

Eddie stumbled, even though they were standing still. "I kicked ass," he slurred with a laugh.

He frowned at Lena. "Is he drunk?"

She frowned and nodded her head. "He had a couple of beers with me, but he might've had more. Wasn't with him all night.

"Did he hit his head?"

She huffed a frustrated breath. "I don't know, okay? Maybe."

Buck bit his tongue and did his best not to snap at her.

"Jesus, Eddie." He adjusted him in his arms, and once he was sure Eddie was secured, Buck leaned down a little to be able to speak to her. "Thank you for calling me..."

"Lena," she told him with a small smile. "And it was no problem, I just called who he told me to."

His eyebrows lifted in surprise. "He told you to call me?"

"Yeah. And I can see why he did," she told him with a shrug.

Buck frowned, then shook it off. He was about to ask her what she meant when she just took off. He shook his head. Was the woman unable to say goodbye like a normal human being?

He looked down at Eddie, who had his head on Buck's chest and was drooling on him, and rolled his eyes. "Eddie. Eddie, you gotta wake up."

"Hmm?" He lifted his head up, and squinted at him. "Hey, Buck. When did you get here?"

"Just got here." He helped him into the car and put his seatbelt on for him, then got in himself. "I'm taking you to a hospital."

He shook his head with a groan. "No hospital."

"Yes, hospital. You look like a giant bruise, and we need to know if you have a concussion."

Eddie snorted, and then giggled, he actually _giggled_. Buck didn't know whether to laugh at him or be concerned. His head lolled to the side and Buck poked at him until he straightened again. "What?" He asked, annoyed.

"Stay awake."

"But I'm tried."

Buck rolled his eyes. "We're both tired, Eddie. If I'm not sleeping, you're not sleeping."

Eddie grumbled something under his breath, though it was too quiet for Buck to hear, and crossed his arms over his chest like a pleutant child.

.

They got to the hospital in record time, thanks to Buck's driving. He tried to keep Eddie awake as they waited for his turn, but it didn't work all that well, since he kept falling asleep midsentence. Buck almost cried in relief when Eddie's name was called. He helped him up and steered him into the exam room.

The nurse started asking him about Eddie's basic information, and he was surprised he knew all the essential details she needed. She kept eying him in a way that made him feel uncomfortably scrutinized, and he did his best to ignore it.

"How did these happen?" She asked briskly, still giving him that calculating look, and it clicked. She was trying to figure if he'd done this to Eddie. He tried not to be offended, and reminded himself that she was just doing her job, but made sure to keep his hands in plain view, so that she could see that his knuckles were intact and answered her.

"He was out with a friend, and she told me there was a fight. She didn't give much details before she took off, and he was in no condition to tell me anything. Except that he apparently kicked ass."

Her shoulders finally relaxed and she cracked a smile. She looked to Eddie, who was snoring softly. "Your boy sure seems like a handful."

Buck's breath hitched, and he stared at her, tongue-tied. He didn't correct her, even though he knew he should, and he told himself it was only because they might tell him to leave the room if they found out.

Thankfully, the doctor chose to come in right when Buck was stating to go down the rabbit hole that was his feelings for Eddie.

.

A concussion, bruised ribs and a lot of bruising was Eddie's diagnosis. Buck was relieved, because it could've been a lot worse. Christopher would freak out when he saw him though, since his face was all bruised up.

_Christopher_.

Buck knew Eddie would've had someone watching him if he'd planned on going out. But, still, he needed to make sure Christopher was situated for the night.

Buck didn't know who was looking after Christopher, so once he made sure Eddie was comfortable on his bed and covered him with a blanket, he took out Eddie's phone from his jeans- which involved a lot of awkward maneuvering- and unlocked it. He saw over twenty texts from his aunt and winced. He opened the conversation and texted back an edited, very vague version of what happened, and hoped she didn't ask too many questions.  
  
Buck looked at the time and sighed once he saw it was 3:30 am. Since he would have to go pick up Christopher at 6 am, there was really no point in falling asleep. He set his alarm just in case and sat next to Eddie's head on the bed. Tomorrow, technically today, was shaping up to be one hell of a long day.

.

When his alarm rang, he hurried to turn it off to keep Eddie from waking up. He grabbed his keys, wrote a note that explained where he was in case Eddie woke up before they got there, and headed out.

When Eddie's aunt met him at the door, she was alone and Buck swallowed once he saw the thunderous expression on her face. "Hi-"

She cut him off. "I'm sorry to be rude, but what is going on? Why isn't Eddie here."

Buck nervously cleared his throat. "I don't know the details either, but-"

"Buck!"

_Thank god for Christopher._

Buck smiled wide and turned his attention to Christopher, who was smiling widely and slowly making his way to him. He pulled the boy into his side gently when he reached him, and leaned down to kiss his hair. "Good morning, Christopher," he said enthusiastically.

"Morning," the little boy replied. "Where's dad?"

Buck shared a look with Josephine, and she raised a skeptical eyebrow, though she seemed to have softened somewhat. "I'll explain in the car, okay? Don't want us to be late!"

Christopher nodded and started walking to the car. Buck turned to Josephine and shrugged helplessly. She waved him off with an eye roll. "Go. But tell that nephew of mine we're having one long conversation the next time I see him."

Buck nodded with a grin. "Yes, ma'am."

"Buck?"

He turned back around and saw her make her way to him. He was surprised when she hugged him briefly, and patted her arm when she pulled away.

"Thank you for saving our Christopher, and for looking out for him."

He ducked his head and smiled softly. "Anyone would've done the same."

She shook her head and patted his cheek. "Not anyone. So, thank you."

There was a lump in his throat, and he could barely get a word out, so he just nodded.

He settled Christopher in the car and got in. He took off toward his house, and tried to prepare himself for the questions Chris would have. Sure enough, not even a minute later, he started interrogating him. Buck laughed quietly. "Slow down, kid."

Christopher giggled. "Sorry."

"It's okay. To answer your questions: yes, your dad is okay, he's just a little banged up. Yes, we're going to my place and your dad will be there." He looked in the rearview mirror with a deadpanned look. "And _no_, you are not skipping school."

.

When they entered the loft, it was quiet, so Buck knew Eddie was still asleep.

"You want to see your dad?"

Christopher nodded eagerly. Buck carried him up the stairs, making as little noise as possible. "We have to be real quiet, okay, kiddo? Let him rest."

Christopher nodded. Once they reached his bed, Buck put him down and he immediately walked over to his dad. Buck saw his eyes glisten, and he quickly walked over to him. He slid to his knees beside him and turned the kid's face so that he was looking at him.

"I promise you, it's not as bad as it looks, okay? I promise."

Chris nodded and leaned into Buck. "Can we go downstairs now?"

Buck kissed his head. "Sure."

He carried him down the stairs and settled him on a chair. He opened his fridge. "So, pancakes, waffles or cereal?" Buck asked, already knowing the answer.

Christopher grinned, instantly more chipper. "Pancakes!"

"Comin' right up!"

.

"Alright, kiddo, do you have everything you need?"

Christopher nodded, looking up at Buck with a smile he couldn't help but return. He stopped just a couple of feet away from the entrance. "Hey, Buck?"

He put a hand on the boy's head, and ran it through his hair. "Yeah?"

"Is dad really okay?"

Buck crouched down in front of him. "Yeah, buddy, I promise. He'll probably be a little sore when he wakes up, but he'll be good as new in no time."

Christopher nodded, his eyes on the ground.

"Hey, look at me."

Christopher did, his eyes wide and trusting. Buck smiled. "Have I ever lied to you?"

The little boy shook his head.

"That's right. And I'm not about to start now, okay?"

"Okay."

"Alright now, let's go inside before you're late."

.

"Eddie. Eddie, wake up."

A groan was the only response he got, so Buck shook him harder. He groaned again, but managed to open his eyes this time. "Buck?"

"Hey."

He frowned, looking around. "What time is it?"

"8:30."

Eddie sprang up, eyes wild and chest heaving. "Jesus, _Christopher_! He's still-"

"I took care of it, Eddie." He raised his hands, placating, and tried to calm him down before he hurt himself further. "_Eddie_, he's at school. I dropped him off, it's fine."

Eddie doubled over, his hand wrapped protectively around his ribs, and Buck winced in sympathy. "God, Buck, what did I do?"

Buck stayed silent, unwilling to kick him when he was already down. He did have questions, and part of him was mad at him for not thinking of Christopher before he participated in a street fight, but he figured he didn't need to voice his thoughts since Eddie seemed to be beating himself up enough.

Eddie finally looked up at him, and the apprehension in his expression broke Buck's heart. It seemed that Eddie was expecting Buck to be angry at him, when in reality, Buck was only worried.

"What did you tell him? And what did you tell aunt Jo?"

"I told them both the same thing; that you got a little banged up. I didn't go into details, because I didn't know how much you wanted them to know. And, to be honest with you, I didn't want to lie to Christopher."

"Was he mad at me, because I didn't take him to school today?"

Buck shook his head with a smile. "No, he was just worried about you."

"What am I gonna tell him, Buck?"

He wiped a tear that made it's way down Eddie's cheek, and if his fingers lingered a bit too long than was necessary, neither one mentioned it. "I think you need to tell him as much as you can of the truth. Tell him that you made a mistake, and that you participated in a-maybe a wrestling match, or something? And maybe tell him it won't happen again?"

Eddie nodded, his eyes closed. His expression twisted in pain, and Buck sprang up from the bed. He'd put the painkillers and a glass of water on the bedside table before he'd driven Christopher to school, so he grabbed those and handed them over to Eddie. He took them gratefully and Buck's eyes lingered on the movement of his adam's apple, the cords standing out on his neck as he swallowed. He shook the thoughts off. Now was not the time for his attraction to Eddie to make itself known.

Eddie handed him the glass back, and Buck set it on the table, avoiding Eddie's eyes. A hand on his startled him and when he looked at Eddie, he was smiling tensely. "Thanks for everything, man." It took a few seconds for the words to register as what he meant them to be; a dismissal. Eddie got up from the bed, and headed downstairs. Buck scrambled to follow after him, and when he headed for the door, Buck was struck dumb. "That's it? You're just leaving now?"

Eddie turned to him, expression confused. "What else am I supposed to do, Buck?"

Buck stared at him incredulously. "I don't know, I thought maybe we could talk?"

Eddie's face hardened. "We have nothing to talk about."

Buck laughed incredulously. "Oh yeah? How about why I had to drag you to the hospital at 2 am? Or why you thought it was a good idea to get involved in street fights. Don't you think you at least owe me that?"

"_I don't owe you a goddamn thing,_" Eddie shouted. Buck reared back as if struck and stared at Eddie. Even he seemed surprised by his outburst, and though his expression was apologetic, he didn't say he was sorry.

Buck shook his head. "You need to talk to someone about what's going with you, Eddie. If you don't want it to be me, that's fine, but at least talk to someone."

Eddie didn't give any indication that he was even listening, just stared ahead with a neutral expression. When Buck finished talking, he opened the door and stepped out.

"Eddie."

He huffed. "What, Buck?"

"At least tell me the fighting was just a one time thing?"

Eddie just pursed his lips. "Bye, Buck."

The door clicked shut quietly, but there was a weird sort of finality to it that broke Buck's heart.

.

He didn't hear from Eddie for two long torturous days, and he didn't try to contact him himself, mostly because he knew it wouldn't be welcome. He'd thought that, given time, Eddie would cool down and talk to him. But there was nothing, just complete radio silence. Buck was getting impatient, and he'd seriously considered going to the station and ambushing him multiple times.

He was about to sit down on the couch when there was a knock on his door, which surprised him. After the whole mess with the lawsuit, he was pretty much cut off from the team. It hurt, but he understood where they were coming from. He knew it looked bad, but he was sure once they got the notice that they were cleared, they'd allow him to at least explain his side of things.

When he opened the door, he was pleasantly surprised to see Eddie and Christopher. Christopher looked happy as always, but Eddie looked like hell.

"Can we come in?"

Buck opened the door wide, and allowed them in. Christopher greeted him like he always did; by leaning into his side and looking up at him with a sunny smile. Buck smiled back and ruffled the boy's hair. Eddie, when he came in, stopped when he was right in front of him, leaving virtually no space between them. Buck forgot how to breathe for a second. "That offer to talk still standing?" He asked him quietly.

Buck blew out a nervous breath and nodded. "Always."

Eddie smiled and clapped him on the shoulder. Buck followed after them and once they made sure Christopher had everything he needed, they sat on the kitchen table. "Hope you don't mind that we invited ourselves over, but there are some things I thought we should talk about."

Buck shook his head. "Of course I don't mind, you know you two are always welcome here. You want anything to drink?" Eddie shook his head, so Buck just grabbed one beer and sat opposite him. "I'm actually surprised that you came at all."

"Adam Anderson came by today, and he told us something interesting."

Buck just nodded. "You guys were cleared."

Eddie smiled, though it was sad around the edges. "That's not the only thing he said."

Buck looked down at the beer in his hands and scratched at the label. "What else did he say?"

"That you had our backs, that you fought for us."

Buck scratched his neck, uncomfortable with where the conversation was headed, and Eddie continued.

"We should've known. We shouldn't have doubted you so easily. I shouldn't have doubted you."

Buck looked up and into his eyes, and the intensity of his gaze nearly took his breath away. He wanted to avert his eyes again, but it was like he couldn't look away. He was able to pull himself together eventually, and he waved his hand dismissively. "Water under the bridge."

Eddie laughed fondly, and Buck found himself smiling at the sound, he'd missed it so much; much more than he had a right to. "You forgive too easily, anybody ever tell you that?"

Buck shrugged. "You guys are my family, you're easy to forgive."

Eddie half smiled, and it seemed like it was his turn to avoid eye contact. He took a deep breath, looking like he was steeling himself for something. "You told me if I needed to talk, you were willing to listen. That offer still standing?" He repeated his earlier question, as if to give Buck an out.

"Of course it is, man," he told him immediately. He was endlessly pleased that Eddie trusted him enough to confide in him. He'd honestly given up on it ever happening, especially with how rocky their relationship had become in the past few days.

"I- this isn't easy for me to talk about, so bear with me, okay?"

Buck nodded. "Take your time."

"I have PTSD. It's gotten a lot better than it was when I first got back, but it's still there, you know?" Buck nodded, and clasped his hands together in an effort not to reach out to him. Eddie continued, "after Shannon, and then almost losing you and Christopher, it got worse. It felt like all the progress I made was just gone. The nightmares were back, the anger was back and I -I was drowning."

Buck couldn't take it anymore and put his hand out on the table, palm up. It was an offer, a choice, and he was relieved when Eddie took it and held on tight. He shuddered out a breath and closed his eyes.

"When Lena told me about the fighting, I jumped at the chance. And, Buck, it felt good. It was a release and it made me stop thinking, at least for a few minutes."

Buck fought back tears as Eddie spoke, his heart breaking a little more with each word. He hadn't known. How had he not noticed that he'd been struggling for so long? He wanted to apologize, but he knew it would only give Eddie an opportunity to deflect and make this about him. So he kept it to himself and listened.

"I lost myself for a while there, and if Lena hadn't put a stop to it? I- that night could've ended very differently. And that terrifies me, Buck." He roughly wiped a hand across his eyes and sniffed. He looked to where Christopher was sitting, and his face crumbled. "I didn't think about him, about what it would do to him if something happened to me." He turned back to Buck, tears running down his face. "What kind of father does that make me?"

"You remember what you told me when I said that I failed him?"

Eddie nodded.

"You love him. Anybody who spends two seconds with you would know that. And yes, you messed up, but that doesn't make you bad father, Eddie." He squeezed Eddie's hands in both of his and smiled at him reassuringly. "You're allowed to make mistakes, you just have to not repeat them, and you're golden."

Eddie laughed. Buck nudged his shoulder playfully and faked offense. "Hey, that's solid advice."

Eddie, still laughing, held up his hands. "You're right, you're right."

"How about we watch a movie with Chris, huh?"

Eddie hesitated. " I don't know, it's pretty late."

Buck rolled his eyes. "He doesn't have school tomorrow, Eddie. Come on."

Eddie conceded. "Alright, yeah."

"Good! I'll start making the popcorn."

.

"Chris, little man, we've watched this movie a hundred times. _Please, I'm begging you,_ pick another one," Buck pleaded with the little boy. He looked to Eddie for back up and saw him laughing silently at him. Buck picked up a cushion and chucked it at him. Eddie dodged it easily, still laughing.

"How about Ice age, huh? You like Ice age, right? The fifth one is pretty awesome!"

Chris just shrugged. "Okay, I guess." He sounded less than enthusiastic, so Buck resigned himself to another night spent watching the fucking Minions. When he sat back, Eddie poked his arm. Buck looked over and he smirked at him. "I can't believe you let him play you like that."

Buck just shrugged with a grin, then turned back to the TV.

A few minutes later, Eddie poked him again, and Buck glared at him. "What?"

"Thank you, for everything."

Buck squeezed his arm. "You don't have to thank me, man. I'd do anything for you two."

"Ditto." Eddie rolled his eyes at his response and Buck laughed.

Christopher turned his head in Buck's direction and shushed him. Buck raised an eyebrow at him, and poked him in the side. Christopher yelped and then laughed. "You probably know the dialogue word for word by now, what are you shushing me for?"

Christopher just shrugged, focused on the movie again.

He turned to Eddie and pointed at the kid. "Shushing me and ignoring me, the kid's all you," he informed him in a jockingly accusatory manner.

He laughed softly. "When have I ever been able to ignore you, Buck?"

Buck stared at Eddie, and something he couldn't identify took hold of his expression. His eyes moved from Buck's eyes to his lips in a slow a way that could not be mistaken for anything other than deliberate. Buck swallowed thickly, and turned his face towards the tv. When he looked back at him a few seconds later, Eddie was still watching him with that same intense look. It was charged, and it was too much for Buck.

He sprang up from the couch, and headed to the kitchen, pouring himself a glass of water even though he wasn't really thirsty. He heard footsteps behind him and turned to see Eddie a few steps behind him. They quietly stared at each other for a few seconds, before Eddie broke the silence.

"I'm sorry."

Buck frowned. "What for?"

Eddie looked away, his jaw clenched. "Come on, man, don't make me say it."

Buck was speechless. Just a few minutes ago, the idea of Eddie actually returning his feelings was nothing but a wild dream. And now he was standing in front of him, looking all nervous and worked up, and telling him, with everything but words, that he had feelings for him. The situation was so surreal that Buck needed a minute to wrap his head around it.

Apparently, he took too long to respond, because Eddie turned on his heel and hightailed it to the living room, calling out to Christopher.

Buck panicked and ran after him. He clutched his arm and turned him so that he was facing him. They were both breathing hard by that point, and Buck wanted nothing more in that moment than to just kiss him. He couldn't, though; not before they talked and were both on the same page. "Don't go."

Eddie closed his eyes. "Buck," he sighed.

"Stay the night." At Eddie's raised eyebrows, Buck realized what he said and flushed. "I mean, so that we can talk, once Christopher is asleep."

Eddie searched his face, then nodded hesitantly. Buck sighed in relief and smiled at him. "Alright."

When they sat on the couch, they kept their distance. They stole looks every now and then, but didn't speak. Once the movie was over, Eddie asked Christopher if he minded staying at Buck's for the night, and he immediately nodded with a grin.

"Can we have pancakes tomorrow?"

Buck laughed. "Yeah, we'll have pancakes tomorrow."

.

  
Eddie put Christopher to sleep in Buck's bed and spent about ten minutes after his son was asleep freaking out. When he'd come here today, telling Buck about his feelings for him hadn't been part of the plan. It'd been getting harder and harder to keep his feelings at bay, and Buck wasn't exactly helping, what with him being so fucking perfect and saying exactly what Eddie needed to hear and being so good to Christopher. Eddie was getting tired of having to hide, of having to think about every word and every action. And though he wished it was at a better time in their lives, he was glad they were going to have that conversation now.

He wiped his sweaty hands on his jeans and took a deep breath. Here goes everything, he thought. He went down the stairs, and saw that Buck was pacing. Eddie was relieved to know that he wasn't the only nervous wreck here. Once he reached him, Buck stopped pacing and they locked eyes. Now that Christopher wasn't a few feet away, he was finding it harder not to just jump Buck right then and there.

"I like you," Buck blurted out, then cringed. Eddie laughed softly and blew out a breath of relief.

"That's a relief."

Buck grinned. "I actually more than like you."

Buck leaned in first, but Eddie was the one who closed the distance between them fully and kissed him. Eddie's lips brushed his softly, almost experimentally at first. He moved to pull away, to gauge his reaction, but Buck didn't let him. He reeled him in again, and though he tried to deepen the kiss, he failed because neither of them could stop smiling.

Eddie rested his forehead on Buck's. "I more than like you, too. In case that wasn't obvious."

Buck's eyes darkened, and he unexpectedly dragged Eddie over to the couch. He pushed him down on it gently, and straddled his legs. His hands ran up Eddie's arms and he leaned down slowly, driving him crazy.

  
Buck's lips landed on the corner of Eddie's, and he lingered there, just breathing him in. Eddie closed his eyes, and gave himself over to Buck. Buck's lips moved first to his cheeks, kissing each one slowly and deeply, then to his closed eyelids. His fingers ran through Eddie's hair and when he opened his eyes, it was to find him staring at him with a soft smile that had him blushing.

Buck leaned in. "I'm glad you came here today, Eddie," he whispered against his lips. And then, finally, mercifully, he kissed him, slow and deep.

"I am, too."

There would be time to talk about when and what they would tell Christopher and the team, time to figure out what either of them wanted and expected from this relationship, but for now, Eddie smiled and kissed him again.

And he never wanted to stop.


End file.
